Our Winter Jakara Juniors Camp's theme was Sikhi Da Butta. We had a day full of lessons, activities and connecting. What is unique about Misl MN's Jakara Camps is we try to incorporate the concept of Sewa into each camp. This year we had youth pack bagged lunches. We were able to pack over 200 bag lunches which ended up going to a local food shelf. We love to share the concept of Sewa with the kids and discuss how important it is to realize that they are really blessed and to not always think about themselves.
We had a group of very engaged kids and facilitators. One assignment which came out of the camp for the older group was to think of a topic and conduct research on the topic to present a 3-5 minute presentation to the sangat. We are going to have our first presentation around the Harmandir Sahib this Sunday. Stay tuned...
Misl MN is always looking for new activities and ideas to incorporate into the camps so please comment below if you have any ideas that have worked well at your misls, etc.
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Over the summer we hosted yet another Turban Tying Day at the Minnesota State Capitol. The attendance was HUGE! We were able to tie over 300 turbans throughout the day. We plan to continue this tradition into next year and hope to get even more volunteers as well as turbans donated.
This year was unique as awards were given. We are proud to say that our booth was awarded the Best Activity and Engagement booth!!
Check out some pictures below and share your thoughts on how we can make this event even bigger next year!
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This past Sunday Misl Minnesota celebrated International Women’s Day by hosting an event after langar called: Women Empowerment Day. During this event we celebrated the lives of Sikh Women in history who have really been a guiding force and inspiration throughout history. From Bibi Nanaki who encouraged young Nanak to pursue his lifelong mission to the 52 women missionaries who helped Guru Amar Das Ji spread Sikhi throughout the country.
We also played the Sikhnet animated film called: KAUR which really inspired women from all ages to see the reality that we grow up with. We ended with a discussion of the film and also statistics of the harsh reality that shows us that the values of equality taught by our Guru’s have been drifting away.
This was our first event where we posed this new dialogue to our sangat and so far have gotten positive feedback. We hope to have similar events like this to start changing the narrative of women in our community and broader community.

'You have a misl in Minnesota?' Oh the countless times I've heard this when I talk about our misls. My response? 'Yes! They are superstars!'. Whether it was Ruppa never giving up (even when she was the only one in the misl), to Gurpreet asking for ways to diversify their projects, to Rajin asking for fundraising ideas, these individuals are dedicated, creative, and always up for a challenge. Today Misl Minnestoa has a council, regular events, and is working with other volunteers to host our first Lalkaar Midwest in Chicago (more details in the coming weeks)!
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Jakara Movement Misl MN with help from Sikh Society of Minnesota, SALDEF and Surat Initiative had a booth at the State Capitol grounds on August 16th. With over 20,000 people in attendance the booth spread awareness about Sikhs by tying Turbans on over 300 people. This was all possible because of the amazing volunteers and Waheguru's kirpa (God's blessing). Those who got their turban tied said on multiple occasions that the moment the turban was tied a new sense of pride came from within (even if they didn’t know much about Sikhi). Our volunteers taught the many guests of the event who Sikh's are, the importance of the 5 articles of faith along with discussing Turban Myths and misconceptions of Sikhs. Many people were impressed by the uniqueness of Sikh culture and left with vast knowledge. They gave a lot of respect to the volunteers who were already "naturally" wearing turbans even more, by calling them "Sardaar ji". Sikhs of Minnesota were very grateful to participate in this celebration promoting Sikh awareness which was never done here before at such a high scale.
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